When The Past Catches Up
by Lilac Wolf
Summary: I went through and edited most of my mistakes! Summary - Before the world went to shit, Merle and Daryl Dixon were part of a trio of friends, completed by one Alicia Cambridge. One day, she gets bit, and flees into the woods to save the brothers the pain of killing her. Now nearly a year later, all is well with the brothers and the rest of the camp - Until Alicia shows up.
1. Chapter 1

**When the Past Catches Up**

_**When The Past Catches Up**_

**Summary: Ever wonder why Daryl is so violent and brash? Well, back before he joined the group, it was him, his brother, and Alicia Cambridge. The three were inseparable. But when the plague broke out, they had to separate after a painful accident. Daryl and Merle were broken... but they moved on. What happens when the past catches up to them?**

**WARNING: I haven't reviewed The Walking Dead in a while, so characters may be OOC. Especially Merle. I kinda want him to play the kind older brother...**

Chapter 1: Remembering The Past...

'_Daryl, Merle and Alicia were at a shooting range, practicing with their rifles. They all hit directly in the middle, and once finished, congratulated each other. They walked toward he door, but heard what sounded like growling..._

_A person jumped out at them, trying to bite Merle. He cursed, and grabbed his rifle. Shooting it in the head, he backed up nervously. "What the hell was that?" Alicia voiced each of their thoughts. _

_"I don't know..." Daryl replied hesitantly. They all held up the guns, prepared to shoot anything that threatened them._

_Walking outside, they noticed the place was empty, except for a few of the wandering... whatever they were. They took them down, and headed to the Dixon house. Stocking up on food, pills, and supplies they knew they'd need, they grabbed as many weapons as they could._

_Alicia grabbed two pistols, putting them on her belt. She also attached a knife. Then, for a main weapon, she grabbed her father's prized rifle._

_Daryl grabbed a buck knife, a rifle, and his crossbow._

_Merle also grabbed a buck knife and rifle, and also hid a pistol tucked into his shirt. They were set. They headed out, taking down all of the 'walkers', as they called them.'_

Daryl reminisced, remembering the good times. He sat on a stump, Andrea and Amy chatting away across from him. He promptly tuned them out. Merle was taking his turn out hunting for the group, and when he returned, Glenn, Jacqui, T-dog, Andrea, Morales and he were heading into the city.

Currently, Shane and Lori were taking a 'walk', Dale was scouting out as usual, Glenn was with Dale, the women were doing laundry, the couples were all together, and the children were playing.

He looked around the makeshift camp, before getting sucked into more memories of the past trio.

_Alicia was taking a nap, unaware of the grayish-brown eyes watching her sleep. Daryl sighed softly. How could he convey to Alicia that he cared for her.. A lot? Merle snuck up behind him, placing his hand on his brother's shoulder. Daryl jumped, startled. Merle chuckled, patting the boy's shoulder. "You're in love with her, huh?"_

_Daryl sneered. "What about you?" He retorted, a small reddish tint adorning his dirty face. Merle chuckled again. _

_"Sure, I love 'er, but not like you do, little bro." Daryl looked away._

_"You should tell 'er," His brother's voice interrupted the tense silence. Daryl's head spun around, meeting his brother's softened eyes. He stayed quiet for a few moments._

_"I would, but... How do I tell her?" Merle again chuckled. _

_"Bro, you just gotta be yourself. I'm sure she likes ya, too." He stated, before settling down and falling asleep himself._

_'Just be myself...' Daryl thought. He smirked a little, before grabbing his crossbow and starting his watch duty._

_All the while he wondered, 'But just what is bein' myself?'_

The redneck cringed, remembering what happened in the days following.

Amy and Andrea looked over from their conversation, as Daryl cringed, his eyes glazed over in thought. Amy turned to her sister. "What's up with him?" Andrea shrugged, and the resumed their conversation.

Merle soon returned from his hunting, and found his brother deep in thought. He walked over, placing his hand on Daryl's shoulder. He sat down next to him.

"Thinking about her?" Daryl looked up, and nodded. Andrea and Amy looked over to watch. "You know, it ain't yur fault, bro," Daryl squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head.

"But it was," He replied in a whisper.

Andrea looked at Amy, confused. Her younger sister shrugged, and motioned back to the two rednecks.

"You couldn't have known it was there," Merle told his brother. Daryl was beginning to get frustrated. He hated remembering that terrible day.

"But I couldn't save her!" He roared, catching most everyone's attention. Embarrassed, he lowered his voice. "I could'a saved her, though, and you know it, Merle. I-I killed her." Merle frowned.

"No, you didn't! The walker did, Daryl. It wasn't your fault at all."

Everyone was now watching the brothers interact with interest. Most were wondering who could've made the cold-hearted brothers act so kind. They also wondered what happened to this mystery girl. Daryl as well as Merle were sucked into the memory of Alicia.

_Merle, Daryl and Alicia were hanging out, eating dinner around their small bonfire. Alicia was cracking jokes left and right, making the brothers laugh heartily. 'Tonight', Daryl thought. 'I'll tell her.'_

_Their fun time was interrupted by snarling and growling. Cautiously, they all grabbed their weapons. They observed the small clearing, both brothers protectively guarding Alicia. She yielded her rifle, carefully watching the surrounding tree line._

_A rustle to their right grabbed their attention. She pointed her gun, and shot. A rabbit fell out of the bush. Merle picked it up, and tossed it near the fire pit. Then he went back into defensive mode._

_The brothers both carefully stepped forward and searched the dark tree line on either side. When neither were looking, a walker skulked up behind Alicia and bit her arm. She screamed loudly, grabbing Daryl and Merle's attention. Daryl's eyes widened and his heart sank at the sight of Alicia's arm, with a chunk ripped out._

_He now knew that he would not be able to convey his feelings. Alicia fell to the floor, eyes wide and trembling in fear and pain. Merle pulled out his buck knife and stabbed the walker in the head dozens of times. After the thing was dead, each brother, in a panic, kneeled down over Alicia's keeling form._

_"A-Alicia..." Daryl stuttered, wanting to just hug her to his chest and cry. He resisted the urge and fought the tears that stung his eyes. She smiled up at him. _

_"I-I don't want you to see me like this," She said. "I don't want you to... ugh... see me change into a walker..."_

_She said, standing. She started to walk toward the tree line. "Merle, Daryl... Live a good life and move on, please..." And she smiled and stumbled into the dark forest, leaving the brothers alone to face the fact that not only was their best friend going to turn into a walker, but she left them too... _

_'At least,' Daryl thought, 'I didn't have to kill her...'_

"It was too painful to watch her go," Daryl stated. Merle nodded.

"I know, bro, I know."

Everyone was watching the brothers reminisce about their past. They wondered who this girl was, but decided not to push it. Daryl suddenly stood up, pulling Merle up with him. "Merle, time for you to go," The younger brother said, ushering his brother toward the rest of the group.

Merle eyed his brother sadly, knowing that in a couple of days, it would be the anniversary of the night that Alicia was bitten.

"See ya, bro," And with that, the group left.


	2. Chapter 2

_**When The Past Catches Up**_

**Summary: Ever wonder why Daryl is so violent and brash? Well, back before he joined the group, it was him, his brother, and Alicia Cambridge. The three were inseparable. But when the plague broke out, they had to separate after a painful accident. Daryl and Merle were broken... but they moved on. What happens when the past catches up to them?**

**WARNING: I know some people might not like me for this, but I have a certain plan for this story. I'm warning you now. You'll find out in this chapter what I mean; and if you don't like it, please no flames. Those are what keep me from writing. Just don't read it anymore. And, uh... language. Definitely language.**

Chapter 2: Feeling Alive

Daryl had just returned from hunting; Damn, it was a real shame he let that deer get away. Not to mention this new fucker, Rick was his name. Lori's husband and the kid's dad.

"Hey Daryl, slow up a bit, I got some news." Shane jogged his way as he called for his brother.

"What happened?" He asked simply. The new guy stepped in.

"There was a little mishap in Atlanta, and he got left behind." He told it to Daryl straight, he'd hand it to him. But he was still pissed.

"Is he dead?" The redneck asked calmly, probably scaring them.

T-dog responded, "He's handcuffed on a roof... I padlocked the door, no geeks could get in." Daryl seethed.

"I'm goin' back for him." He said simply, before heading to his tent and throwing the squirrels down.

"Whoa now," Rick tried to stop him as he headed for the big van they'd brought back. "Let's think this through a little." Daryl cut him off.

"No, no thinking. This is my BROTHER. I'm goin' back for him, no questions asked." Rick sighed, and walked over to his wife. Daryl waited impatiently. "I'm coming with," He said after a while. Lori looked upset, but Daryl didn't give a flying fuck. Glenn and T-Dog also volunteered, which set Deputy Do-Good off.

"Now, think this through. This is Merle Dixon. He ain't worth your guys' lives," He tried to reason, but Daryl so badly wanted to tell him off.

Instead, he argued, "Maybe not you guys, but Merle's my flesh and blood. He's an ass, yeah, but still. I'll go alone." The other men disagreed. After a long while of reasoning, it was decided that Daryl, Rick, Glenn and T-Dog would go back for Merle.

Somewhere deep in the forest, a young woman maneuvered her way through the underbrush silently. She held a knife in her hand, ready to attack any threat to her safety. She had to find a place to sleep; she was utterly exhausted.

It had been at least a week since she last slept. She had just escaped the city, and she feared that some walkers were following her. They were getting smarter, she reasoned. They were running out of food in the city so they had to expand their range. Finding a sturdy, tall oak tree, she climbed as high up as she could and leaned back against the trunk. She gazed at the faded mark on her arm, the one she had nursed all her own. With a sad expression, she closed her eyes and slipped away.

_'It had been several days since Alicia had left the Dixon brothers' camp, and she was yet to be dead. Her bite was infected, and that caused her to be a bit woozy, but nothing major. Holding her hand over the wound, she stumbled deeper into the forest… or so she thought._

_In truth, she was a day's walk from the city; from civilization. When the tall buildings came into view, her heart leaped in joy. People... doctors... medicine._

_Two days later, she found her way into a pharmacy; abandoned, obviously. She had found the city was not what she had hoped for. Not at all. There was not a living soul to be seen, only the dead for miles and miles. But Alicia had found that if she walked like one of them, they didn't even acknowledge her. It must be the scent of the bite, she figured._

_She found several antibiotics and downed them with a bottle of lukewarm water. She then rinsed the wound, which burned like a sinner in hell. She bit her lip until it bled to keep from crying out. Once it was cleaner, she wrapped a cloth around it after applying some antibiotic cream. She took refuge in a small cupboard, and took a nap._

_When she awoke, she removed the cloth and grimaced. She would need stitches, definitely. She searched around for a needle and thread, but only found the needle. With a sigh, she ripped a part of her shirt off and found a loose seam. Using that, she stitched up her wound._

_About a week later, Alicia had holed up inside a shack just outside the city. Some 'End of the World' lunatic had stocked it with food and bleach containers filled with water. She lived off that for nearly a year._

_By then, the city was completely overrun. She weaved her way around the outskirts of the city, only running into a few walkers. At one point she saw a huge herd feeding on something... a horse? Hm._

_Finally, she made it into the forest. She escaped the city, and now she had to find her way on her own. How would she do it?'_

It seemed like mere hours she had slept, but she knew it had to have been at least 12 hours. Without a word, she stood and stretched, before remembering she was in a tree. "Oh shit!" She yelled loudly as she fell.

Daryl had just found his brother's hand - his own brother had cut his hand off to escape. He way beyond pissed now - he was... he was... extremely pissed (he was too pissed off to think of a better word). As they headed back to camp, he could've sworn he heard a curse come from the forest to his right. He lingered a moment longer, before brushing it off as his imagination.

As they walked back toward camp (because his ass of a brother stole their van), they heard screams emanating from that direction. "Oh, shit!" Rick yelled as they hauled ass.

When they got there, it was a horrific scene. Walkers littered the area, Amy was down with Andrea by her side, Ed was dead and many others were fighting for their lives. Without a second thought, the men rushed into battle. Shane herded everyone up toward the RV, and the returnees took the rest out.

After everything had calmed down for the most part, all eyes turned to Andrea and her dying sister. "Amy..." She sobbed, as her sister finally passed away. Daryl knew that feeling; or, part of it. Completely out of character, he walked up to her and put a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry." He said, briefly and gruffly. She looked up with tears in her eyes, and smiled lightly.

"Thank you."

He turned and, ignoring every pair of eyes that burned into him, stalked into his tent to think.

Alicia could hear the screams from miles away. She had been right - Walkers had followed her. And they had just attacked a camp.

She quickly slipped through the forest, quiet as a mouse. As she approached the campsite, she could hear many voices. She finally got close enough to sneak a peek.

The first thing she saw was a mother holding her son closely to her as he cried - It almost brought Alicia to tears. Just by observing the area, she could see how much damage had been done. Just then, a sharp sound came from her left; a tent unzipping. She looked over, and her eyes widened. She let out a loud intake of breath, before cursing herself. She moved silently away just as a few people looked over.

She had seen the one and only Daryl Dixon; the man who believed her dead.

She found another vantage point, this time from above. She climbed a tree and observed while trying to keep herself hidden. She saw two police officers talking, and a lot of people being buried. Daryl had begun to drag decaying bodies toward a large fire, of which she could feel the heat of from there.

She stifled her tears as she watched Daryl go to and fro; she missed him so much. How she longed to just sit down and have a conversation with him and Merle one last time. But alas not, she thought to herself; they believed her dead, or at least reanimated. She knew she should have went back to them once she found out she was immune, but she was sure they had moved on by that point.

Now, Alicia was very agile on the ground. But off of it - that was a different story. And so, with the balance and grace of a moose, she fell from the tree, cursing herself. Of course, she thought despairingly. Of course.

Daryl's head snapped over as he heard something fall from above. Grabbing his crossbow, he rushed over along with Rick, T-Dog and Shane. All had weapons pointed at the intruder. It was obviously not a walker; walkers don't fall from trees. It was a woman. She slowly sat up, cursing words no lady should know. As he caught a glimpse of her face, his eyes widened and he dropped his crossbow completely. The other men looked at him, confused as ever. The woman looked up at him and made eye contact, before gulping.

"Hey, Daryl." With those words, a million memories slammed into him like bricks. He fell to his knees, his eyes frozen wide. Everyone stared at the duo, confusion etched into their eyes.

"A-Alicia."

**There you have it; Alicia's immune. If you don't like it, sucks for you. But really; it's possible.**

**Because everyone is infected, that means the bite itself is not what causes the disease to spread. It's just like any other human taking a bite out of you; basically, if you get it healed and stitched up, and you're immune, you're fine. I actually seriously thought this through before continuing on. I haven't read many walking dead stories, so I don't know if immunity is a common theme or not. Please don't flame if it is. This is all my own story.**


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